{"id":31902,"date":"2022-09-10T15:48:30","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:48:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-reasons-to-kill-the-lazy-pastor-myth\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:48:30","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:48:30","slug":"3-reasons-to-kill-the-lazy-pastor-myth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-reasons-to-kill-the-lazy-pastor-myth\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Reasons to Kill the \u2018Lazy Pastor Myth\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Ryan Rice<\/em><\/p>\n

I enjoy watching sports documentaries. Not every athlete\u2019s story is the same, but hard work is a clear thread that runs through each story.<\/p>\n

Some of the best sports documentaries are those of the unlikely hero, the underdog. Their hard work elicits our admiration and praise.<\/p>\n

The underdog may not be the best player on the team, but no one outworks them or matches their dedication to their sport. Coaches desire this type of work ethic\u2014where athletes keep their heads down, don\u2019t complain, and won\u2019t stop until they\u2019ve given their all.<\/p>\n

This is the picture I get when I think of pastors\u2014servants who work diligently, give their all, and aren\u2019t lazy.<\/p>\n

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When I first started the church planting journey, someone told me, \u201cDon\u2019t be lazy.\u201d After I received the same advice from two other people, I asked if this was a common trait among church planters and pastors.<\/p>\n

Yes, I was told, a few bad apples do spoil the bunch. However, this doesn\u2019t tell the real story of what pastors experience on a daily basis.<\/p>\n

No matter how hard the pastor preaches, serves, or visits, it\u2019s never enough. Some will even go as far as to say pastors need to find \u201creal jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an ugly myth that pastors are lazy. It\u2019s a myth that needs to die. Here are three reasons why.<\/p>\n

1. Pastors Put in Many Hours.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

According to Lifeway Research, 84% of pastors say they\u2019re on call 24 hours a day. Pastors are often the first people to get to the church and the last to leave.<\/p>\n

The emails, calls, and messages don\u2019t end after Sunday\u2019s message. Additionally, many pastors hold two or three jobs. They find themselves juggling many responsibilities along with pastoring.<\/p>\n

2. Preparing to Preach Takes Time.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Sure, some pastors in America practice what they call a \u201cSaturday night special\u201d\u2014a hurried put-together message that received little prep or thought.<\/p>\n

But pastors called to preach and teach the Word of God take their calling seriously. They know they\u2019ll give an account to the Lord for what they taught and the people they shepherded.<\/p>\n

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See also  What Sparks Evangelical Generosity? Discipleship<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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When pastors get up to preach, they\u2019ve already spent time praying, studying, and preparing to divide the Word of God rightly.<\/p>\n

3. Leading at Home and Church.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In 1 Timothy 3:4, Paul says one of the qualifications of an elder is that, \u201cHe must manage his own household competently and have his children under control with all dignity.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, the pastor is not only called to lead well at the church, but also at home. And when pastors are taking time to minister to their kids or their spouse, it\u2019s time well spent.<\/p>\n

Resting in Christ<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most pastors know they work hard, but live under unrealistic demands they place on themselves. Instead of resting and abiding in Christ, many pastors plow with their heads down out of fear someone will call them lazy. This can lead directly to an unhealthy grind, undue stress, and burnout.<\/p>\n

Pastor, you may feel like the underdog, but the end goal isn\u2019t to have a documentary made of your life. Instead of trusting in how hard we can work and proving everyone wrong, let\u2019s rest in Christ\u2019s finished work and in what He\u2019s done.<\/p>\n

RYAN RICE, SR. (@ryanricesr)<\/strong> is husband to Sean\u00e9, father of Ryan, Jr., Brayden, Reagen, and Bailey, and has been in ministry since 2007. He\u2019s currently the lead pastor of Connect Church of Algiers in New Orleans, Louisiana, which they planted in 2014.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Dig Deeper at Lifeway.com<\/div>\n
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<\/div>\n
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Zeal Without Burnout: Seven Keys to a Lifelong Ministry of Sustainable Sacrifice<\/h2>\n

Christopher Ash<\/p>\n

FIND OUT MORE <\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Related posts:<\/h3>\n
What Do Pastors Believe About the End Times? What Do Pastors Believe About the Book of Revelation? 3 Ways to Reach Non-Religious People in Your Community <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ryan Rice I enjoy watching sports documentaries. Not every athlete\u2019s story is the same, but hard work is a clear thread that runs through each story. Some of the best sports documentaries are those of the unlikely hero, the underdog. Their hard work elicits our admiration and praise. The underdog may not be the … Continue reading “3 Reasons to Kill the \u2018Lazy Pastor Myth\u2019”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31902\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}